We also hope it will help the comments section fulfil its promise as a part of Scotland's conversation with itself. His mother moved from Jamaica to London in 1951 and spent four years working and saving to earn enough to pay for passage for her two sons. Here, he talks to our Writer at Large Neil Mackay. Share this article: 5. The myths and lies they had heard made them think I was a robber, inferior. Palmer quotes from Shakespeare: Mislike me not for my complexion., Come 1964, Palmer was in Edinburgh embarking on his doctorate. Given his irrepressible sense of humour, Palmer turns to a joke he once heard in Ireland, when he was consulting for Guinness as a chemist, to explain the ideal society he would one day like to see. Palmer has also authored a book on the history of slavery, The Enlightenment Abolished: Citizens of Britishness (2007), and has spoken out extensively against the slave trade.[20][21]. Born in East Carlton, Northamptonshire, he obtained a BA from Christ's College, Cambridge, in 1616 and a MA 1619. The address introduces Sir Geoffrey Palmer and Dr Andrew Butler's two books, A Constitution for Aotearoa New Zealand and Towards Democratic Renewal - Ideas for Constitutional Change in New Zealand, and their proposals for a written constitution. Have a look around our UK campuses facilities by taking a virtual tour. Were discussing it openly at last. [10] After leaving school in 1958 with six O-levels and two A-levels, in botany and zoology, he found a job as a junior lab technician at Queen Elizabeth College, London University, working for Professor Garth Chapman. He investigated the processes that turn barley into malt, and he invented the barley abrasion process while at the Brewing Research Foundation. Sir Godfrey Palmer, known as Geoff, was the first black professor in Scotland and discovered the barley abrasion process, subsequently adopted by the UK's biggest breweries. White women would move away from him if he sat near them. True to form, at the symposium Sir Geoffrey analysed the pressing problems that we need to solve for the future. This historical topic is very unfamiliar in Scotland and has never been a major part of the school curriculum. The process of enrolling in a school was not easy as a young black child in 1950s London. It is important that we continue to promote these adverts as our local businesses need as much support as possible during these challenging times. Te Herenga WakaVictoria University of Wellington has been Sir Geoffreys intellectual home, and we have been fortunate to benefit from his contributions as a student, lecturer, donor, and Distinguished Fellow. If you have a complaint about the editorial content which relates to The legacy of Scottish slave traders can be seen in the bequest of buildings now used as museums, council buildings, schools, houses some still associated with past owners. Many of these are visitor attractions and are now looked after by the National Trust for Scotland, which is working to publish the histories of their properties and how slave-ownership and colonialism contributed to Scotlands history. The Slavery and Colonialism projects being conducted by Edinburgh City Council and Museums Scotland, which are chaired by Sir Geoff, may hopefully help to develop education in schools. He once studied the listings and found that 60% of the names are Scottish surnames, indicating that nearly two-thirds of the population had ancestors once owned or raped by a Scot. In 2003 he obtained the OBE (Order of the British Empire) for scientific and charitable work. 1st Palmer Baronet of Carlton Contributor: LBeebe (47085083) 1 photo picked. He has been an academic, law practitioner, MP, Minister, law reformer, and participant in international law and diplomacy, and he continues to find domestic and international affairs fascinating. Some people think I must be the most anti-white person in the world, he chuckles then points out that his wife is white and so are his childrens partners. He served as president of the Law Commission from 2005 to 2010, a government-funded organisation that reviewed areas of laws and then made recommendations for changes to parliament. Decision making is a slow process through a multitude of committees, the three-year electoral cycle makes it difficult to plan long-term, and there is little monitoring of existing legislation to see how it is performing. [11] He sought post-graduate work, and applied to study for an MSc at the University of Nottingham, funded by the Ministry of Agriculture. He is a past Visitor (and Chairman) of the Incorporation of Maltmen of Glasgow, Scotland an old charitable organisation. Sir Geoffrey notes that no cabinet can be successful without an excellent public service where much of the talent resides, and that their analysis should be more widely sought. During that time, Sir Geoff invented the barley abrasion process, the success of which attracted funding to establish the International Centre for Brewing and Distilling as part of the Heriot-Watt campus in Edinburgh. I have had the pleasure of knowing Sir Geoff throughout my time as Principal and Vice-Chancellor and he is the very embodiment of this University and its values. That meant Black Lives Matter campaigners become angry, and we dont want people starting to get aggressive, he adds. An official inauguration ceremony will be held during the Universitys Bicentennial celebrations in October. Sir Geoffreys son Matthew Palmer is a former Pro Vice-Chancellor, Dean of Law, and Director of the New Zealand Centre for Public Law at Victoria University of Wellington, and is now a High Court judge. Learn More. Therefore, although my research was carried out at Heriot-Watt, my registration was at Edinburgh University. In his view this is exacerbated by current trends such as the 24-hour news cycle emphasising the trivial and strange, a debilitated media due to the digital revolution, the decline of democratic principles, lowering of standards of political behaviour, and the refusal to follow well-established diplomatic norms. He taught courses on International law and global environment issues as well as a two-week mini course about the International Court of Justice. Sir Geoff has a long association with the city of Edinburgh, he first arrived in the Capital in 1964 to pursue a PhD in Grain Science and Technology jointly with the then Heriot-Watt College. Palmerserved as a member of the Government Inquiry into Operation Burnham that concerned the conduct of New Zealand military forces in Afghanistan and reported in 2020. On leaving politics in 1990 he acted as a visiting law professor at the University of Iowa and the Victoria University of Wellington through the early 2000s. It suggested that existing methods are too slow and cumbersome, and he has made a speech on the subject to the United Nations, but as yet these suggestions have not been adopted. When Palmer recently had his DNA analysed, he discovered he was 97 per cent African, and 3% Shetland/Viking meaning it is highly likely a white Scot raped one of his enslaved female ancestors. I protested strongly to the umpire that the batsman was out. Palmer was appointed a Gentleman of the Privy Chamber around 1704 and held the post until 1714. Young black people know what happened in the past, and after the murder of George Floyd which Palmer describes as a crucifixion they felt there was resistance from within parts of the white community to their demands for change. Dame Judi, who starred in nine series of As Time Goes By with Palmer, told BBC Radio 4's Front Row programme: "Geoffrey was master of comedy, an absolute master." Paying . On 29 April 2021, it was announced that Sir Geoff Palmer had been appointed as the Chancellor of Heriot-Watt University, for an initial term of five years. The Heriot-Watt University emeritus professor makes a number of claims highlighting Scotland's role in the slave trade. In 1994 he became a Foundation Partner of Chen & Palmer Public Law Specialists where he remained until 2005 when he was appointed President of the Law Commission, a position he occupied until 2010. The Palmer familys land was once called Marshalls Pen the name of one of Balcarres slave plantations. I remember this fellow joking that there was once an undercover agent in Kerry during the war, and he was black but nobody noticed. He explodes with laughter. In 1968 he began his research work at the Brewing Research Foundation in Surrey, England where he worked on the science and technology of barley from 1968 to 1977. If you think youre a good person and then learn your relative was actually Jack the Ripper, it can cause a bit of jolt, he says ironically. During his working life Sir Geoff has travelled and lectured worldwide and was instrumental in the development of the Tropical cereal sorghum, as brewing material and food in Africa, making various trips to Nigeria, Kenya, Zimbabwe and South Africa. These include the courses offered by the Master Brewers Association of the Americas (MBAA), American Brewers Guild, UC Davis, The Siebel Institute of Technology and others. A Gannett Company. [33][34][35], In August 2015 Palmer was the guest of interviewer Jim Al-Khalili on the BBC Radio 4 programme The Life Scientific. Sir Geoff Palmer was urged to quit as chair of two panels re-examining Edinburgh's involvement in slave trade Sir Geoff Palmer criticised the Edinburgh professors Jonathan Hearn and. The Balcarres family seat can be found in Fife. Professor Sir Geoff Palmer He was knighted in the 2014 New Year Honours. Professor Sir Geoff Palmers term will last for an initial five-years. At Heriot-Watt, he and his students worked on brewing using sorghum. In 2016 he was made a Master of the Bench of the Middle Temple in London. He was a prison visitor for many years and is on the Board of Sacro, an organisation that works to reduce offending. Despite these hurdles, he was eventually accepted at a secondary school where he proved himself to be an excellent cricketer and was subsequently invited to attend a nearby grammar school. Sir Geoff, who came to Edinburgh in 1964, has excelled in his chosen profession in the field of brewing and distilling . Someone in my great aunts family wouldve been the same, Palmer says. Sir Geoffrey Palmer, 1st Bt. And as we celebrate 200 years of our University, I very much look forward to working with him in continuing to promote Heriot-Watts reputation nationally and around the world.. After completing his degree at Leicester University Sir Geoff returned to Haringey, London to secure a job. We are honoured to have Sir Geoff Palmer as our guest speaker at our next Friend's meeting. He moved from New Zealand to Iowa in August 1969 to become a . Alongside his academic work, Sir Geoff is a board member of many charitable and equality organisations, including the Citizens Advice Bureau. Unless explicitly stated otherwise, all material is copyright The University of Edinburgh 2023. The Abrasion process was patented and used by the British Brewing Industry. My interest in Scottish-Caribbean historical connections led me to find a letter written by Sir William Gibson-Craig, the MP for Midlothian in 1838, to his father who owned the Riccarton Estate on which Heriot-Watt University was built. Today, Palmer is hailed as the first black person to ever become a professor in Scotland. Professor Sir Geoff Palmer has just found out he's part Viking. The Jamaican government is aware of whats happening here. Sir Geoffrey gave the second Owen Woodhouse Memorial Lecture in 2018 and called for a bold and visionary overhaul of New Zealands accident compensation system. by Yes. Sir Geoff was knighted in the 2014 New Year's Honours for services to human rights, science, and charity. granted degree awarding powers. His supervisors were Professor Anna MacLeod at the Heriot Watt University and Sir Edmund Hurst at Edinburgh University. We are lucky at The Herald. As a celebrated grain scientist, prominent human rights activist and proud Scotsman, Sir Geoff Palmer's fascinating life has given him the opportunity to highlight the importance of an equal and diverse society. I arrived in Edinburgh as a PhD student in December, 1964. Other achievements are linked to travelling to Nigeria to widen the industrial use of sorghum, a locally-grown grain, and receiving a Distinguished Research Award from the American Society of Brewing Chemists. Do you have a fair representation of the diversity of society? Matthew notes that Sir Geoffrey enjoyed simultaneously terrifying and endearing himself to generations of students.. They launched a consultation asking about whether some . Sir Geoff Palmer. Weve got to work towards a society where everybody is just like everybody else and nobody notices what colour your skin is.. He wrote a series of articles for the Times Educational Supplement from 1969 to 1971 on way to improve the education of children from ethnic minorities. Exerting his authority, he sent me off the field for questioning his decision. Share this video: Facebook. In the past, the journalists job was to collect and distribute information to the audience. Data returned from the Piano 'meterActive/meterExpired' callback event. In 2007, the Bicentenary of the passage of the Slave Trade Act 1807 by Parliament, which abolished the slave trade, Professor Geoff Palmer was named among the "100 Great Black Britons",[22] as well as on the 2020 updated list. Theyre all in Jamaica. He holds four honorary doctorates. He was born in St. Elizabeth, Jamaica but grew up in Allman Town, Kingston before migrating to London to join his mother at the age of 14 to help her by working in a local grocery shop in Islington in 1955. He is Honorary President of Edinburgh and Lothians Regional Equality Council and Birminghams Association of Jamaicans. RT @SirGeoffPalmer: Our health needs: Let's change this for the better. He regularly writes and speaks about Scotland's role in slavery and colonialism and he brings to the steering group a wealth of knowledge and experience as an . While slaves were working and dying, people were consuming the sugar, in those bowls, and with those tongs. We remain committed to the promotion of justice, equality, diversity and inclusivity in all that we do. It was because these families had some connection to colonialism, he says. Professor Emeritus and Chancellor of Heriot-Watt University Sir Geoff Palmer has been presented with the prestigious Edinburgh Award 2022 in a ceremony at the City Chambers this evening. A two-week mini course about the International Court of Justice, equality, diversity inclusivity... 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